Erik Slavin / Stars and Stripes

Lance Cpl. Benjamin Nelson, of the 2nd Battalion, 7th Marine Regiment in Twentynine Palms, Calif., opens wide to chow down on a scorpion at a jungle survival course hosted by the Thai marines Tuesday in Sattahip, Thailand. "It was crunchy. Lots of shell," Nelson said.

Once a training mainstay, jungle warfare now a niche Marines don’t want to forget

On Tuesday, Marines from the 2nd Battalion, 7th Infantry Regiment learned how to capture, kill and survive on animals they might find in the jungle, including snakes and chickens. They also got a crash course on jungle plants and found out what insects go down easiest. The course was part of the annual Cobra Gold multilateral exercise.

 

VA prodded to give more aid to female veterans

The number of female veterans being treated by the Department of Veterans Affairs has doubled in recent years and is expected to double again within a decade.

As Afghan assault looms, many civilians haven't fled

As U.S.-led coalition troops prepare for a long-awaited offensive against the Taliban in southern Afghanistan, few civilians have managed to escape the town at the center of the operation.

McChrystal orders AAFES scaled back

Gen. Stanley McChrystal, commander of U.S. and NATO forces in Afghanistan, has ordered many Army and Air Force Exchange Service facilities closed as a way to focus on the war and to provide space for the U.S. troop buildup.

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